The Name Game
by Ladyamesindy
Summary: A fan of the old adage, 'Always leave them guessing,' Commander Random Shepard is quite content that not much is known about her or her past. Until Chief Ashley Williams asks a simple question ... Part of the Commander Random Shepard series.


_**Part of the Commander Random Shepard series. This idea came to me a while back, but getting the conversation to flow was more difficult than I'd thought it would be. I still have another piece or two in mind for her, so keep an eye out if you're interested. :) And as always, thanks for reading!**_

* * *

"Commander."

Seated at the table, Shepard glanced up from the datapad containing the latest intel on Therum. Not much to go on, but it was a starting point at least. "Chief."

There was a brief but recognizable hesitation in Williams' body language which Shepard noticed instantly. "Did you need something?" she asked.

The Chief, Shepard noted, did a quick little dance back and forth from heel to toe to heel before making her decision. Nodding, the younger woman dropped into one of the empty chairs at the table. "If you've got a minute, Skipper."

Smiling, Shepard lay the datapad to her right, folded her hands together before her and nodded. "Sure do. What's up?" she asked in a pleasant tone hoping that might put the woman at ease. Alenko had told her the last time they'd spoken that Williams seemed to be intimated by the Commander. Further discussion had given Shepard reasons to understand. It was more than just serving her first shipboard assignment or serving with an N7 and first human Spectre. It appeared that the Chief was one of _those_ Williams'. Talk about heavy burdens to bear. Well, Shepard wasn't about to let the actions or opinions of others influence what she thought of the woman. She'd seen the Chief under fire and in the field and when Anderson got around to asking his XO for her opinion, agreed with the rest that Williams was a fine addition to the _Normandy_ crew. She just hoped that the Chief would soon catch onto that.

At the moment, though, the enlisted woman was still on edge, a fact given away by how Williams kept darting her eyes around the galley and mess area. Shepard waited patiently. And if there was one thing she'd had to learn over the years, it was how to be patient. She liked to think she was making some good progress in that regard.

"It was something Joker said," Williams finally announced, her eyes narrowing in finally to focus back on the Commander.

Mentally, Shepard nodded. Good. Williams faced her situations head on. In response to the statement, though, Shepard simply smirked and pointed out, "Joker says many things, Chief, the majority of them greatly exaggerated. You'll have to be a bit more specific."

Apparently, it was the right thing to say as Williams snorted softly and relaxed into her seat. "Point, Skipper. Anyway, this had to do with you. Specifically, I mean."

Another smirk. "Oh?" She gave Williams a wink. "Still too vague, Chief. Last one I heard that originated from him had me at ten feet tall and shooting rainbows out of my backside."

Williams' shoulders shook, but that was the only indication the woman was reacting. Still, Shepard felt it was progress. "I haven't heard that one," the Chief admitted. "Yet, anyway. This was something about how you got your name."

There was a movement off to the left, but Shepard ignored it. She had a guess as to what caused it and if correct, it wasn't threatening so much as it was simple curiosity. That she could live with. For the moment, like Williams, she kept her face forward, focused on the woman sitting opposite.

Sighing softly, Shepard's eyebrow arched as she murmured, "Of course he did." Shepard liked Moreau well enough, and she could admit he was a hell of a pilot from what she'd seen both on his service record and with the _Normandy_ so far. And he certainly had earned his nickname well enough. Still, the guy spooked her sometimes. Like how he could chase up certain heretofore secret bits of information and filter them out amongst the crew; because if Williams had wind of this one, damn well sure the rest of the crew did too. If the pilot was so good he could figure out these sorts of things, who knew what else he might dig up.

Sighing again, Shepard asked, "What about it?"

More movement off to her left, but this time it was in her line of sight as she noticed Alenko and the doctor heading towards the galley. The Lieutenant glanced over at her, his eyes dropping to the table and the mug sitting in front of her before rising to meet her once again, this time with a question in them. Shepard nodded, smiling. At least he knew how to make a decent cup of coffee.

"Is it true it was given to you?" the Chief asked.

"Most people are 'given' their names," Shepard countered easily enough. _Come on, Williams, I'm not going to just serve it up to you on a platter. If you're really that curious, you've got to earn it!_

This time it was Williams who sighed, eyes rolling. "Well, of course, but that's not what I meant. Joker was saying that before you enlisted, you had no name but Shepard."

It was the aroma of the coffee that caught Shepard's attention first and she realized that both the doctor and Alenko were coming to join her and Williams. Turning, she accepted the fresh mug from the Lieutenant as he dropped beside her and Chakwas took the seat beside the Chief. Lifting the mug, Shepard took a long, silent moment simply to inhale. _Nectar of the gods_ , she thought, a smile curving at her lips. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw one of Alenko's brows arch sharply upwards and heard Chakwas chuckle softly. Both were well acquainted with the Commander's proclivity for the drink and Shepard assumed they were now following her line of thought simply by reading her body language. Flashing them both a quick wink, she ignored their reactions and turned back towards Williams. "He is right," she announced. "I didn't. My name was given to me at the recruiting station when I signed on."

"But," Williams continued, "what kind of a name is 'Random'?"

"You haven't told her yet, Commander?"

The doctor's question pulled the Commander's attention. "What does it matter, doctor? The only name that matters is on my gear and my tags." She caught her index finger in the chain holding said dog tags and ran it back and forth to make the metal pieces jingle softly.

Shepard ignored the disgruntled sound that escaped the older woman, but she could not ignore the words. "For heaven's sake, Commander, just tell her already!"

Sighing, Shepard's eyes dropped to her mug, now sitting flat in front of her, and began fiddling with the handle. "Fine then. If you want the whole boring story, here it is: When I enlisted I was told that I needed to have two names: a first and a last. Since I only had one, they presumed that it was my surname and told me to pick one for my first. I had absolutely no idea _how_ to go about choosing a first name. Captain Anderson was there - he was the one who convinced me that my future lay with the Alliance - and he gave me a few suggestions, but none of them quite worked."

Shepard took a sip of her coffee and shrugged her shoulders before continuing. "Finally, I told them both, 'Just pick something at random and it will have to do.' A few minutes later I was given my file and Anderson led me away to the shuttle that would take me to basic. It was only after I was aboard and the flight underway that I glanced down at the datapad and realized what they'd chosen."

There was a moment of quiet before Shepard heard soft chuckling. Beside her, though Alenko kept his face expressionless; across from her, though, Williams appeared to be chewing quite hard on her lip to keep from laughing aloud. But beside the Chief, the Doctor had a full grin plastered on her face. Brow lifting, Shepard asked, "You find something amusing, Doc?"

Chakwas snorted, her eyes meeting Shepard's as she rose to her feet. "Oh, I was just thinking what an opportune lesson in learning that you should be more careful what you wish for, Commander," she quipped, turning away to head back to the med bay.

Maintaining a neutral expression, Shepard turned back to Alenko and Williams. "Anything else?" she asked.

Alenko was the first to reply. "No, ma'am," he assured her as he, too, rose and returned to his nearby duty station.

Shepard figured she would stop by later and speak with him, somehow find an opportunity to allow him the chance to laugh it off. For now, however, she turned back to Williams and arched her brow. That seemed to catch the woman off guard for about a half second as Shepard heard the Chief's breath hitch, but she relaxed a moment later, her grin finding its usual sassiness easily enough. "I'm good, Skipper," she replied.

As the Chief stood, Shepard did too, turning to head back to her cabin. Before she made it two steps, she heard Williams say, "And thanks, Skipper, for indulging my curiosity."

"Don't mention it, Chief," Shepard assured her.

Inside her cabin, Shepard crossed to her desk and reached for a stack of reports that she'd set there earlier. She was just beginning to scan the first when she heard a soft ping at her wrist.

An unfamiliar, but easily discernible, chat ID flashed at her, _That's not how I heard it._ Snickering softly to herself, Shepard typed off a quick reply. _Your source is unreliable. Besides, mine makes for a better story …._


End file.
